Vision Maker Media (VMM), the world’s premier source of media by and about Native Americans since 1976, is celebrating fifty years of successfully empowering and engaging Native filmmakers to chronicle Native lives, sharing Native knowledge and accomplishments, and presenting Native historical and cultural films for the benefit of all Americans.

As the leading American provider of Native American content, Vision Maker Media has enjoyed a robust and lasting partnership with public television stations across the nation. Films produced and supported by VMM have reached an average 89% of American television viewers and 98% of VMM films have been broadcast within the nation’s top 50 markets. Later this year, Vision Maker Media will launch a new public television series, “First People, First Stories,” featuring the work of young Native filmmakers.

Initially conceived by founder Frank Blythe as a means to support, promote, and distribute films by and about Native Americans, in 2020 the organization expanded its mission to identify and support young Native filmmakers with training, funding, and professional development opportunities and to present their films at film festivals, community gatherings, and on public media. Since its founding, VMM has worked with Native filmmakers representing 72% (or more than 400) of North America’s tribal communities.

“My father, Frank, believed that the world could be changed and healed by understanding Native stories and knowledge. He worked hard to build lasting connections with hundreds of Native filmmakers and tribal leaders, with like-minded non-profits, with public media programmers, and with the larger American filmmaking community. He built a creative ecosystem that supported hundreds of talented Indigenous storytellers and ensured that our Native stories would not be sidelined or lost,” said Blythe’s daughter, Francene Blythe-Lewis (Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota, Diné, Eastern Band Cherokee), who is Vision Maker Media president and CEO. “I am honored to carry forward the legacy of his good and hard work.”

While public media has historically provided the primary platform for sharing films presented by Vision Maker Media, today the company is adapting to embrace new opportunities. Blythe-Lewis and her team are expanding the company’s work to bring Native stories to additional platforms, including Fast Channel streaming, mobile apps, university partnerships, and festival screenings and museum exhibitions in the United States and internationally.

Supporting promising new Indigenous talent remains key to Vision Maker Media’s mission. Since 2020, VMM continues to champion its self-sustaining iNative 7th Generation (iN7G) youth media programs to support aspiring and emerging young filmmakers.

“Fifty years is an exciting achievement for Vision Maker Media and it comes at a pivotal moment for our organization,” Blythe-Lewis said. “As we celebrate our many past accomplishments, we’re also welcoming exciting new opportunities. We look forward to many years to come.”

For information about Vision Maker Media or to interview Francene Blythe-Lewis, please contact Chris Kelly, Fifth House PR, at ckelly@fifthhousepr.com or 617/510-2333.

Vision Maker Media

Vision Maker Media (VMM) is the premier source of media by and about Native Americans since 1976. Vision Maker Media’s mission is empowering and engaging Native people to share stories, envisioning a world changed and healed by understanding Native stories and the public conversations they generate. VMM works with its funded producers to develop, produce and distribute programs for all media. VMM supports training to increase the number of Native Americans and Alaska Natives producing programs across a variety of platforms.